No surprise as Rage cancelled

Ballito Rage, in a file from pre pandemic times, was cancelled this year after a number of participants tested positive.

Ballito Rage, in a file from pre pandemic times, was cancelled this year after a number of participants tested positive.

Published Dec 4, 2021

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IT IS extremely disingenuous for the organisers of the Ballito Rage to claim, after the discovery of 36 cases of Covid-19 among guests and staff, that it took “the safety of all our customers, staff and suppliers extremely seriously” in cancelling the event.

In the face of the discovery of a new Covid-19 variant, which is believed to be driving the rise in positive cases across the country, and despite predictions of what would happen if the event went ahead, the organisers insisted Ballito Rage, which draws teens from far and wide, would go ahead.

To nobody’s surprise, positive cases were found.

The issue, of course, goes beyond the 36 cases discovered. How many more did the 36 infect at the festival before being diagnosed? And how many more will they infect when they return home?

The organisers’ protestations of relying on information, guidelines and mandates from the government and the national and local departments of health, and of implementing stringent testing protocols, carry no weight.

Common sense predicted the outcome, and dictated that the event be cancelled, never mind all the disappointed, irresponsible teens and their even more irresponsible parents.

Contrast this response with that of the organisers of the Plett Rage.

They too had implemented “the most stringent Covid-19 preventive measures”, but sense prevailed and they realised “there was no way to pre-empt the devastation that the current surge of Covid-19 cases nationally would cause”.

The organisers said the event site was built and staff were ready to welcome customers. “Our doors are ready to open but will sadly stay shut. The situation is entirely unimaginable, but there is no doubt in our minds that this is the right decision.”

Congratulations Plett Rage organisers for putting the country and the safety of its citizens before all other concerns.

All the health and other officials who did nothing to prevent Ballito Rage from going ahead should take a hard look at themselves.

Let this be a lesson to others planning large gatherings over the festive period.

Just don’t.

The Independent on Saturday

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South AfricaCovid-19